This invention relates to an improved muzzle brake for attachment to the muzzle of a gun.
The recoil of a gun severely interferes with the accuracy of firing at a target. A hand-held gun, such as a rifle, will tend to kick up and often to one side causing the gun to walk up and away from the target.
The recoil problem is particularly acute with fully automatic weapons, such as the Army""s M14 rifle. As a consequence the United States military has virtually discontinued use of that weapon in favor of smaller caliber rifles in spite of the latter exhibiting lesser firepower.
In the past muzzle brakes have been designed to a variety of configurations. Representative of these are the muzzle brakes disclosed in the following United States patents: U.S. Pat. No. 1,333,402 granted to N. J. A. Galliot et al on Mar. 9, 1920 for xe2x80x9cArrangement for Deadening the Recoil of Firearms and the Likexe2x80x9d; U.S. Pat. No. 2,567,826 granted to J. E. Prache on Sep. 11, 1951 for xe2x80x9cMuzzle Recoil Check for Firearmsxe2x80x9d; U.S. Pat. No. 5,036,747 granted to H. T. McClain III on Aug. 6, 1991 for xe2x80x9cMuzzle Brakexe2x80x9d; and U.S. Pat. No. 5,476,028 granted to O. P. Seberger on Dec. 19, 1995 for xe2x80x9cGun Muzzle Brakexe2x80x9d. As with many other brakes, recoil is reduced with these brakes by directing the propulsion gasses rearwardly from the brake and back into the face of the user of the weapon and nearby companions. This phenomenon can be characterized as xe2x80x9cback blastxe2x80x9d. They also offer the disadvantage of presenting a large and highly visible flash signature for the weapon. Further, these prior brakes do very little by way of suppressing the noise signature of the weapon. All of these features are of considerable importance to the military.
Unlike the prior brakes mentioned above, in the brake of this invention the anti recoil forces are generated in a series of lengthy plenums having reaction wall surfaces therein. A nose piece having additional reaction surfaces therein generates additional anti recoil forces.
The plenums are provided by an assemblage of plenum forming members each having a forward face and a rear face and an axial bore therethrough. Each member has a conical-like recess in the forward face thereof and a conical-like projection on the rear face thereof. The members are assembled with the forward face of one member in contact with the rear face of an adjoining member whereby the recess in one member receives the projection of an adjoining member. Thus, there is created between adjoining members a generally annular plenum which is open at its inner end to the bore through the members for admitting propulsion gasses passing through the bore. Each plenum is further defined as its outer end by a reaction wall surface on the rear surface of an adjoining member. And finally the members are further configured to provide a vent for each plenum, preferably primarily in the upper region of the assemblage of members.
In addition to generating anti recoil forces the plenums contain the propulsion gasses for a sufficient period to allow substantially complete powder bum thereby reducing the flash signature of the weapon. The same is also true of the nose piece. Because of the confinement of the propulsion gasses, albeit for a limited period, the explosion sound leaving the brake is suppressed thereby reducing the noise signature of the weapon.